What remains?
Protection, careful removal and the boundary between retained and replaced work must be understood before demolition begins.
Contact Clause collection 01 / Repairs and Refurbishment
Existing buildings rarelytell you the whole story.
Repairs and alterations bring retained fabric, hidden conditions and awkward interfaces into almost every operation. The R series is being developed for the work that a brief instruction such as ‘repair as necessary’ or ‘make good’ does not properly define.
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- R series
- Status
- In production
- Emphasis
- Existing fabric and interfaces
01 / Where difficulty begins
The new work is often the easy part. The difficulty lies in what surrounds it.
A small alteration can disturb structure, finishes, services, fire stopping and retained construction that nobody intended to replace.
If those interfaces are not dealt with in the tender information, contractors must decide how much to allow. One prices a local repair. Another assumes wholesale replacement. A third excludes the awkward part altogether.
That is how a familiar operation produces several different prices and a problem on site that was present in the documents from the beginning.
02 / Where assumptions gather
Existing work creates questions before the first tool is lifted.
What supports it?
Openings, removals and disturbed construction may require checks, sequencing and temporary stability rather than a hopeful instruction to proceed carefully.
What is made good?
The extent, material, finish and performance of repairs need defining if ‘match existing’ is to mean the same thing to every tenderer.
03 / The practical answer
Define the operation. Control the interfaces.
SpecWorks clauses bring the recurring technical requirements together while leaving project decisions with the professional preparing the specification.
Each operation is treated on its own terms: what is to be removed or retained, what must be checked, the critical workmanship, adjoining construction, inspection and the standard expected when the work is complete. Select the relevant clause, adapt the project information and use it within your own tender documents.
04 / Within the collection
The work, broken down into usable operations.
The master R series will be published as smaller thematic books. Clause references will remain fixed across the wider library, while final book titles and contents are confirmed as the collection develops.
- 01Enabling work, protection and selective demolition
- 02Masonry repair, repointing and local replacement
- 03Forming openings, lintels and structural alterations
- 04Wall ties, crack repair and remedial work
- 05Roof repairs, renewal and work to existing coverings
- 06Floors, internal alterations and retained construction
- 07Damp, water ingress and building fabric repairs
- 08Finishes, disturbed work and making good
Judge the work, not the promise
Start with a real clause.
Request an early sample and see whether the structure, detail and practical control would improve the documents you already produce.
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